Texas Toe Jammin’

New Braunfels, TX — 16 riders challenged today at the TSR in New Braunfels, Texas for the wake title at the Rockstar Cable Jam. The wake-to-wake event is always climactic, and today was no exception.
With Jack Blodgett at the helm of the custom Oakley wrapped MasterCraft X Star, the lines were tight and it was up to the riders to show what they’ve got on wakeskating’s biggest stage.
Wake-to-wake shoves were a commonplace, mostly in the more respected non-grabbed fashion, with late shoves from Stu Shinn (backside), Reed Hansen (backside), Danny Hampson (frontside) and Brian Grubb (toeside and heelside frontside). Ross Gardner also made an impact today, stomping two wake-to-wake frontside big spins.
The field was narrowed down to a head-to-head final with heavy hitters Brian Grubb and Nick Taylor. Grubb left the dock first, and landed a nosegrab 360, toeside shove indy, backside 180 and melon body varial. Three falls ended his run before getting a chance to hit the double-up, leaving the door a bit open for Taylor. Suffering from some early technical miscues, Taylor cased the wake on his first few moves, possibly due to a different rope length than he was used to. He then made it a close race sticking a backside 360, toeside backside 180 and switch 360, then mistimed his double-up and landed in second place. Taylor apparently left a lot on the table, as he stuck a switch Madonna 360 on the way into the dock just for fun.
Grubb pulled a repeat as the boat champion at the Rockstar Cable Jam and proved that he is still at the top of the wake riding scene, now winning the title at eight of ten boat events in the Toe Jam history. “I wasn’t sure if I did enough to win the final today, but it proves that every move counts. I don’t want to leave the door open anymore, so I’m really looking forward to the rest of the boat events at the last two stops.”
Saturday’s action will begin at 10 a.m. with the Rockstar Cable Jam Final, showcasing the 16 qualified riders competing in one of the best cable parks in the world at the Texas Ski Ranch.

Rockstar Cable Jam Final Results
Toe Jam Stop Number Two

New Braunfels, TX – The world’s best wakeskaters laid it on the line today at the TSR cable park to determine a champion at the Rockstar Cable Jam.
Decent conditions and perfect rails set the stage for many landmark moves thrown down including:

In the end, the final head-to-head battle consisted of Andrew Pastura and Nick Taylor, who both had an incredible runs in the semifinals with no falls, pushing competitive wakeskating ahead at a rapid pace. After the traditional coin toss with Scott Byerly and daughter Kirra, Taylor won and opted to ride second.
Pastura started out with authority, stomping a kickflip for his first trick, followed by a huge big spin transfer on the Oakley wallride, however he was not able to maintain the consistency of his semis run, falling three times and leaving the door slightly open. Taylor, who won the Rockstar Rail Jam in April, put together another complete run on his new Integrity pro model wakeskate, including a frontside flip, styie front lip wallride, huge shifty off the kicker, kickflip and a front lip big spin off the Rockstar box, sealing the victory.

This run capped off a stellar weekend of riding for Taylor, proving he is currently the heaviest hitter on the ’08 Tour. “Having all the different obstacles at TSR is something that you won’t find anywhere else,” Taylor said. Every round, the riding got exponentially more intense. Andy Pastura blew minds this weekend, behind both the boat and cable.” Taylor also reflected on his current success on the tour, “To be able to win one title is insane, but it’s an honor to be able to win in two different disciplines. I have to thank Scott and Kim Byerly for everything they’ve done for me and the art of wakeskating. I’d also like to thank Integrity, O’Neill, Nike 6.0 and Oakley, plus my family and everyone at the island.”

For their results today, Bret Little and Stu Shinn also earned an invite to The Byerly Toe Jam on September 18-20 in Orlando, Florida